Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC Reduces Stock Holdings in Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM)

Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC cut its position in shares of Waste Management, Inc. (NYSE:WM) by 7.4% during the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 5,702 shares of the business services provider’s stock after selling 453 shares during the period. Franklin Street Advisors Inc. NC’s holdings in Waste Management were worth $1,215,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in WM. Sachetta LLC acquired a new position in shares of Waste Management in the 4th quarter worth approximately $27,000. Opal Wealth Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Waste Management during the 1st quarter worth approximately $35,000. Gilfoyle & Co LLC purchased a new position in shares of Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Pacific Capital Wealth Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Waste Management during the fourth quarter worth about $36,000. Finally, DSM Capital Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Waste Management during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 80.40% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Waste Management

In related news, VP Michael J. Watson sold 4,208 shares of Waste Management stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $204.28, for a total transaction of $859,610.24. Following the completion of the transaction, the vice president now directly owns 45,644 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,324,156.32. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.18% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently weighed in on WM. Robert W. Baird lifted their price target on Waste Management from $214.00 to $222.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Tuesday, April 30th. Oppenheimer upped their price objective on Waste Management from $221.00 to $228.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Friday, April 26th. Stifel Nicolaus raised their price objective on shares of Waste Management from $215.00 to $227.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 26th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft began coverage on shares of Waste Management in a research report on Wednesday, May 22nd. They issued a “buy” rating and a $241.00 price target on the stock. Finally, TD Cowen raised their price objective on Waste Management from $220.00 to $235.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Monday, April 29th. Eleven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, eight have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, Waste Management currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $217.61.

Waste Management Stock Performance

Waste Management stock traded up $0.10 during trading hours on Thursday, reaching $212.77. 917,188 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 1,714,618. Waste Management, Inc. has a 12 month low of $149.71 and a 12 month high of $214.54. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.23. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $207.78 and a 200 day moving average of $199.32. The firm has a market cap of $85.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 34.78, a PEG ratio of 2.47 and a beta of 0.74.

Waste Management (NYSE:WM) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 24th. The business services provider reported $1.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.23. Waste Management had a net margin of 11.98% and a return on equity of 38.61%. The business had revenue of $5.16 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $5.22 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.31 earnings per share. Waste Management’s quarterly revenue was up 5.5% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that Waste Management, Inc. will post 7.31 earnings per share for the current year.

Waste Management Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 21st. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a $0.75 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $3.00 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.41%. Waste Management’s payout ratio is currently 49.10%.

Waste Management Company Profile

Waste Management, Inc, through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.